Early learning crisis: 20 percent of children unable to communicate properly at age 5 – study

A fifth of young British children, many of whom are from deprived backgrounds, are unable to communicate properly by the age of five and face “damaging” lifetime consequences as a result, a new study warns.

The research, commissioned by The Early Intervention Foundation (EIF), shows one-fifth of children lack the personal and emotional development skills expected of them by the age of five.

Insufficient skills include their structuring of sentences, pronunciation, their willingness and confidence in trying new activities and their ability to express themselves well.

A total of 40,000 girls and 82,000 boys lack personal, social and emotional skills by the age of four, according to EIF’s analysis.

Young boys are of particular concern and are twice as likely as girls to start their first day of primary school being “unable to speak properly,” the EIF‘s report suggests.